Stabilizer for railway car trucks



Aug. 24, 1954 5, BATH STABILIZEJR FOR RAILWAY CAR TRUCKS 2 Sheeis-Sheet1 Filed March 12. 1949 Invenjr: Ge omeE' Ila h 1 wily.

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Aug. 24, 1954 3. E. DATH 2,687,100

STABILIZER FOR RAILWAY CAR TRUCKS Filed March 12, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Geggge EJDalh.

g for stabilizing 2. Figure 4 is an end elevational View Patented Aug.24, 1954 s M PATE OFFICE S TABILIZER RAILWAY CAR TRUCKS George E. ,Dath,Mokena,

Miner, Inc.,

Delaware assignor to W. H.

Chicago, 111,, a corporation of Application MarchlZ, 1949, SerialNo.81;,114

1 Claim. (or. 105-197 This invention relates to improvements in railwaycar, trucks, and more particularly to means the action of the same.

One object of the invention is to provide in a railway car truck, simpleand eflicient means for snubbing the action of the usual truckspringsand also yieldingly controlling relative lateral motion of the truckbolster and side frame of the truck.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide means of thecharacter indicated in the preceding paragraph, comprising a frictionclutch connected to the truck bolster, composed of spring pressedfriction shoes and a cooperating wedge block, wherein the shoes havesliding frictional engagement with the truck side frame to snub theaction of th truck springs, and the shoes and wedge block are laterallyslidable on each other to frictionally resist lateral motion of thebolsterand side frame of the truck.

Other objects of the invention will more clearly appear from thedescription and claim hereinafter following.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification,Figure l is a side elevational view of one of the side frame members ofa railway car truck and the associated truck bolster and springs,illustrating my improvements in connection therewith. Figure 2 is avertical sectional view, on an enlarged scale, partly broken away,corresponding substantially to the line 2-2 of Figure 1. tical sectionalview, partly broken away, corresponding substantially to the line 3 -3of Figure of the right hand side portion of the truck bolster,illustrated in,Figure 1, with the friction shoes and springs omitted.Figure 5 is an elevational view of Figure 4, looking from right to leftin said figure, said view being partly broken away. Figure 6 is anelevational view of the right hand friction shoe shown in Figure 2,looking from left to right in said figure. Figure 7 is an elevationalview of Figure 6, looking from left to right in said figure.

In said drawings, I indicates one of the side frame members of a railwaycar truck, which is in the form of a casting, and has top and bottommembers I I and I2, connected by vertically disposed sections l 3|3. Aswill be understood by those skilled in this art, the railway car truckincludes two such side frame members Iii-J0,

a truck bolster l4, and two clusters of truck springs l-l5, one clusterof which is supported on the bottom member l2 of each side frame. Thopposite ends of the bolster I4 are guided between the sections l3.|3ofthe side frames and the bolster is supported by the two clusters oftruck springs. The truck bolster supports the usual body bolster of thecar in a well-known manner. As shown most clearly in Figures 1 and 3,the sections Iii-13 are inwardly offset at the upper ends thereof, asindicated at Iii-l6, to provide guide 6-! I6 between which the bolsterI4 is slidable in vertical direction. The off- Figure 3 is alongitudinal verset portions [5-16 of the sections |3l3 include innerand outerwebs I1 and it which, together with similar webs on the top andbottom members I! and 12, form inner and outer side walls of, thecasting. The inner surfaces of the webs l'l and I8 present verticallydisposed, flat surfaces Iii-l9, which are utilized as friction surfacesin my improvements. As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the side walls of eachside frame, at the upper ends of the sections I3-l3, are braced byhorizontally disposed Wall portions 20-20 extending between the webs l1and I8.

My improved mechanism comprises broadly a pair of friction shoes A-A insliding engagement with the friction surfaces Iii-I9 of the webs I1 andI8 of the side frame of the car, a wedge B fixed to the bolster of thecar and having wedging engagement with the shoes AA, and springs C-Cpressing the shoes AA against the wedge B.

In carrying out my invention, I provide laterally outwardly projecting,Vertical flange 2 I--2I on the bolster M at opposite sides of each endof the same, the flanges at one end of the same only being illustratedin the drawing.

Each projecting flange 2| of the bolster extends into the space betweenthe webs I! and 18 at the corresponding side of the side frame I fl andhas a horizontal follower plate 22 at the lower end thereof formedintegral therewith. The follower plate 22 projects fromopposite sides ofthe flange 2|, as clearly shown in Figures 2 and 5.

The wedge B is in the form of a block at the upper end of the flange 2!,being formed integral therewith and projecting from opposite sides ofsaid flange, as shown in Figures 2 and 5. The wedge B presents inner,relatively blunt, wedge faces 23-23 of V-shaped, transverse section,respectively opposed to the oppositely projecting portions of thefollower plate 22, these wedge faces extending transversely of thewedge.

The friction shoes A-A are of similar design, being disposed at oppositesides of the flange 2|. Each shoe A has a lateral inward enlargement 26at its upper end, presenting an inner wedge face 24 of V-shaped,transverse cross section at the upper end engaging the correspondingV-shaped wedge face 23 of the wedge block B. On the outer sides, theshoes A-A have lengthwise extending, vertical friction surfaces 25-25,which are slidingly engaged with the friction surfaces l9-l9 of the websH and is at the corresponding side of the side frame. The enlargements2i326- of the shoes A-A present transverse, flat abutment faces 2l2l atthe inner or lower ends.

The springs CC are disposed at opposite sides of the flange 2|, beinginterposed between the shoes A-A and the follower plate 22, each springbeing in the form of a helical coil, having its top and bottom endsbearing, respectively, on the fiat abutment face 21 at the inner orlower end of the enlargement 26 of the corresponding shoe and the upperside of the follower plate 22, the abutment face 21 and the followerplate portion at the corresponding side of the flange 2| beingpreferably provided with centering projections 28-28 engaged withinopposite ends of the springs. The springs CC are preferably underinitial compression, thereby pressing the shoes against the wedge tospread the same apart into tight frictional engagement with the frictionsurfaces Iii-l9 of the side frame ll].

As will be evident, up and down movement of the bolster i4 isfrictionally resisted by sliding frictional engagement between thespring pressed friction shoes A-A and the interior friction surfacesl9-l9 of the side frames of the car truck, thus effectively snubbing theaction of the truck springs, both during compression and recoil thereof.Further, the lateral motion of the truck bolster is stabilized by thecushioning action of the spring pressed shoes AA, which are in slidingfrictional engagement with the wedge faces of the Wedge block B, theshoes being displaced laterally with respect to the wedge B duringlateral movement of the bolster with respect to the side frames, andbeing returned to centered position by the wedging action of the wedge Bon the shoes A-A.

I claim:

In a railway car truck, including side frames and a transverselyextending bolster supported by springs on said side frames, thecombination with opposed, interior, vertically extending frictionsurfaces on each side frame at opposite sides of said bolster, saidsurfaces lying in planes at right angles to the length of said bolster;of laterally projecting, vertical flanges on said bolster at oppositesides of each end of the same, each of said flanges at each end of saidbolster extending between the opposed friction surfaces at thecorresponding side of the corresponding side frame; a transversefollower at the lower end of each of said flanges projecting fromopposite sides of the corresponding flange; a block at the upper end ofeach of said flanges formed integral therewith and having transversewedge faces at its lower end; a pair of friction shoes at opposite sidesof each of said flanges having vertically extending friction surfaces ontheir outer sides engaging the corresponding opposed friction surfacesof said corresponding side frame, said shoes having transverse wedgefaces at their upper end in wedging engagement with the wedge faces ofsaid block; and springs under compression interposed and reactingbetween said shoes and follower.

nereremes Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 2,283,332 Light May 19, 1942 2,295,553 Cottrell Sept. 15, 19422,347,463 Couch Apr. 25, 1944 2,378,229 Light June 12, 1945

